Colliding photons were spotted making matter. But are the photons ‘real’?
Collide light with light, and poof, you get matter and antimatter. It sounds like a simple idea, but it turns out to be surprisingly...
SCIENTIFIC NEWS
Schools are reopening. COVID-19 is still here. What does that mean for kids?
As the delta variant of the coronavirus sends case counts surging, millions of U.S. children are heading back to school in person, many for...
50 years ago, scientists developed self-destructing plastic
This plastic will self-destruct — Science News, August 7, 1971 Public indignation over litter and garbage has caused industry to ask chemists whether self-destroying, or...
What science tells us about reducing coronavirus spread from wind instruments
The last time I played clarinet with my band was on March 10, 2020. It was a typical Tuesday evening rehearsal: About 10 musicians...
Squirrels use parkour tricks when leaping from branch to branch
Parkour enthusiasts need look no further than up in the trees for inspiration. Squirrels’ aerial acrobatics make the rodents masters of the form, a...
How particle detectors capture matter’s hidden, beautiful reality
At every moment, subatomic particles stream in unfathomable numbers through your body. Each second, about 100 billion neutrinos from the sun pass through your...
A lunar magnetic field may have lasted for only a short time
A lunar magnetic field may not have just been short-lived; it may have persisted for only a blip in geologic time, a new study...
A bounty of potential gravitational wave events hints at exciting possibilities
A new crew of potential ripples in spacetime has just debuted — emphasis on the word “potential.” By loosening the criteria for what qualifies...
Snake-eating spiders are surprisingly common
A spider’s typical dinner menu might include insects, worms or even small lizards and frogs (SN: 2/3/21). But some arachnids have more adventurous tastes...
A new book reveals stories of ancient life written in North America’s rocks
How the Mountains GrewJohn DvorakPegasus Books, $29.95 Imagine a world where pigeon-sized dragonflies soar above spiders with half-meter-long legs, where 2-meter-long millipedes slither and...
Newborn screening for cancer risk could save lives. Should it be done? 
World marks second warmest July on record 
Ebola deaths top 2,000 as scientists race to develop vaccine 
South Sudan: UN mission decries deadly attacks, works to calm tensions after ‘nothing but devastation’